Currently available vehicle roof designs are moving away from structures incorporating a sheet metal roof that is welded to a roof frame or configured as an integral part thereof. Newer designs increasingly make use of a roof frame on which a roof module, which is manufactured by a supplier, is permanently and fixedly attached via glue and/or screws or other fasteners. Note that even though the roof is still permanently and fixedly attached, it does not exclude the possibility that the roof module, for purposes of replacement, can be separated from the frame in a workshop and replaced by a new roof module that is again is permanently and fixedly attached to the roof frame.
In this context, the roof module is customarily made of plastic and has an exterior skin made of, for example, an aluminum or plastic film attached to a foam backing. The roof module must remain attached to the roof frame even in the event of an impact and a heavy deformation of the roof frame. In case of a lateral impact, which may be simulated by a pole impact test, the immediate result is often a deformation of the roof frame. Therefore, great demands are placed on the attachment of the roof module to the vehicle roof.
There is a desire for an attachment structure that can attach the roof module to the roof frame in a manner that can withstand high impacts regardless of the impact direction.